The British Legion was formed in 1921 for the ex-Service community. It was formed as a merger of four organisations : the Comrades of the Great War, the National Association of Discharged Sailors and Soldiers, the National Federation of Discharged and Demobilized Sailors and Soldiers and the Officers' Association. It is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants. It is also a campaigning organisation that promotes the welfare and interests of current and former members of the British Armed Forces and has an extensive network of Social Clubs called Legion Clubs throughout the United Kingdom.

The Lamberhurst Legion was one of the Clubs which were formed in 1921. Whether my grandfathers brother joined straight away is not known but by 1929 he was at the head of the Lamberhust poppy day parade carrying the British Legion Standard.

In 1930 he was elected as vice chairman and in 1932 became chairman and their representative on the Kent Council of the British Legion.

He was always trying to encourage people to join their local branch as it seems membership numbers throughout the country were not as good as they should be. He wrote the following letter to the local newspaper, The Kent & Sussex Courier, which was published on Armistice Day 1932 :

A year later in 1933 he gave a speech at one of the Legion's annual dinners in when he responded to a toast to the Legion.

He said that he was greatly honoured to reply to the toast, for the Legion was an organisation that he had very much at heart and one to which he gave such spare time as he was able.

“You do not need me to tell you that the Poppy Day collections are the life blood of the Legion. Without these we can do absolutely nothing and there is no need for me to tell you that unfortunately, as the years go on, the need does not grow less. Any benevolent secretary will tell you that he has probably more cases of sickness and general distress than ever before. For the next five or six years that distress is going to increase.”

By 1934 there was a suggestion of the impending troubles bubbling up in Europe which would come to a head later in the decade. Again in a speech made in 1937 he brought up the insanity of war. He said “the British Legion had been making great efforts towards the prevention of war by getting together with the ex-servicemen of other European countries and notably ex-enemy countries and talking to them as man to man, trying to maintain that sanity which did persist in them as individuals if not states, and which alone could preserve them from a war even more terrible than the last one.”

1934

1937

It seems that in 1938 the president of the British Legion had volunteered the services of the Legion to the Government during the Munich crisis and this resulted in the president of the Legion flying to Berlin to meet Hitler. Obviously still hoping that war could be avoided by negotiating and appeasing Hitler, in a speech, Leslie said :

In February 1939, a few months before war would be declared, Leslie talked about the lack of enthusiasm shown by the young to sign up for service voluntarily and responded to those who suggested that the young men of 1939 may not be as ready to serve as those who rushed to serve in the Great War.

The Kent & Sussex Courier reported : Major LESLIE BIRD, county vice-chairman, in response, struck a serious note with regard to National Service. In a speech, he said that in 1918 they thought that they had finished the 'war to end war’ and they had hoped that their sacrifices might have resulted in peace and happiness for the next generation. It is possible, of course, that European affairs have been mishandled since 1918, but it is certain that circumstances have been such that no one at that time could have foreseen the subsequent trend of international affairs. At any rate, the present result was that our country, probably for the first time in its very long history, was facing facts and every man and woman was called to service, not for a war of aggression, but for the preservation of peace. He said, "This call to service is, as you will agree, characteristic of our methods in that it is voluntary and not compulsory, and if it fails it seems to me that democracy as we know it has failed also."

So far as British Legion members and ex-Service men were concerned he thought the majority had not waited for that call, but had enrolled in the various defence services last September or before then. Theirs was essentially a patriotic organisation and the action of the members in enrolling was only to be expected. "I am rather wondering," he commented, "if that example is always being followed by the younger generation. In the drill hall at Tunbridge Wells I see many young men keen to do their bit. but going about the country I do find too many young men who are not realising their responsibilities ........ We must have men trained now, and we must realise our responsibilities now.”Six weeks later ........

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General Blog

These are short blogs about a few of my trials and tribulations and some of the stories I have come across during my genealogy research. Hope you enjoy reading them as much as I do writing them. Please 'like' if you do.